Lightning blamed for Muskego condo fire

Lightning may have caused a condominium in Muskego to catch fire early Tuesday.

The owner of the condo said he saw the lightning strike around 2:30 a.m. He said he started smelling smoke, and then, within minutes, the home started filling up with choking smoke, and he knew he had to get out quickly.

Firefighters from several departments rushed to the condo complex on Olive Circle, where fire damaged the roof of at least one unit.

Seven families were evacuated from the building, and one person was taken to the hospital for an anxiety-related condition.

Neighbor Paulina Freeland said she was sleeping, heard a loud crash, grabbed her cellphone and ran outside to capture the flames.

"I've seen fires. This might be the biggest one that I saw in person," Freeland said.

"It was fire, flames just going up in the air, and smoke like you wouldn't believe," said Luann Paquette, who is on the condominium board.

Fire Chief Carl Wojnowski said a lucky break in the weather allowed crews to extinguish the roof fire quickly.